The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - November 18, 2002 - 5B "WE'RE NOT TOO FAR BEHIND (OHIO STATE). WE COULD SPOIL THEIR WHOLE SEASON. WE CAN HANG WITH THEM, MAYBE EVEN BEAT THEM." -- MICHIGAN CORNERBACK MARLIN JACKSON WEEKEND'S BEST HOW THE AP TOP 25 FARED DEATH IN THE VA.EY: Tiger Stadium, com- monly known as "Death Valley," is regarded as one of the most hostile environments in college football. On Saturday night, one could hear a pin drop. That's because Louisiana State fans were shocked as their 14th-ranked Tigers were embarrassed, 31-0, by Alabama in their worst shutout loss since 1950. Santonio Beard led the way with 109 yards and two touchdowns for the Crimson Tide. "We could not stop the run," Louisiana State coach Nick Saban said. SPARTY SMACK: Michigan State's resur- gence proved to be short-lived. The Spartans (2-5 Big Ten, 4-7 over- all) were once favorites to finish atop the conference. Now, after losing in a 45-42 shootout to Purdue at home, Michigan State can't play in a bowl. In a wild game with 875 yards of total offense and eight turnovers, the Spar- tans fell short when Purdue backup quarterback Kyle Orton threw a 40- yard touchdown pass to John Stande- ford on 4th-and-8 with just three minutes to go. "We didn't always play smart,"interim head coach Morris Watts said. Associated Press Poll for week of November 12. All games played November 16. Team: 1. Miami (Fla.) 2. Ohio State 3. Washington State 4. Texas 5. Oklahoma 6. Iowa 7. Georgia 8. Southern Cal. 9. Notre Dame 10. Alabama 11. Kansas State 12. Michigan 13. Virginia Tech 14. Louisana State 15. Florida State 16. Penn State 17. Colorado 18. Pittsburgh 19. Maryland 20. Florida 21. Colorado State 22. North Carolina State 23. Oregon 24. Auburn 25. Texas Christian Last week: idle beat Illinois 23-16 (OT) idle lost to Texas Tech 42-38 beat Baylor 49-9 beat Minnesota 45-21 beat Auburn 24-21 beat Arizona State 34-13 idle beat Louisana State 31-0 beat Nebraska 49-13 beat Wisconsin 21-14 idle lost to Alabama 31-0 beat North Carolina 40-14 beat Indiana 58-25 beat Iowa State 41-27 idle beat Clemson 30-12 beat South Carolina 28-7 beat San Diego State 49-21 lost to Virginia 14-9 lost to Washington 42-14 lost to Georgia 24-21 idle This week: vs. Pittsburgh vs. Michigan vs. Washington idle vs. Texas Tech idle idle at UCLA vs. Rutgers vs. Aubum at Missouri at Ohio State vs. West Virginia vs. Mississippi at North Carolina State vs. Michigan State idle at Miami (Fla.) at Virginia idle vs. New Mexico vs. Florida State at Oregon State at Alabama at East Carolina NEW AP TOP 25 (first-place votes in parentheses) TEAM PTS PVS 1. Miami (Fla.) (74) 1,850 1 2. Ohio State 1,766 2 3. Washington State 1,628 3 4. Oklahoma 1,622 4 5. Iowa 1,617 6 6. Georgia 1,472 7 7. Southern Cal. 1,341 8 8. Notre Dame 1,284 9 9. Alabama 1,264 10 10. Kansas State 1,171 11 11. Texas 1,124 4 12. MICHIGAN 1,060 12 13. Virginia Tech 847 13 14. Florida State 796 15 15. Penn State 755 16 16. Colorado 754 17 17. Pittsburgh 638 18 18. Maryland 637 19 19. Florida 572 20 20. Colorado State 511 21 21. Lousana State 344 14 22. Texas Christian 246 25 23. Boise State 212 NR 24. Texas Tech 145 NR 25. UCLA 121 NR Dropped out: North Carolina State, Oregon, Auburn AP PHOTO Iowa players Colin Cole, Fred Barr and Brad Banks celebrate earning at least a share of the Big Ten trophy during a pep rally. SCOUTING THE NATION THE DAILY'S PLAYERS OF THE WEEK This week, the Daily's players of the week set a new standard for incredible numbers. Penn State's Larry Johnson and Texas Tech's Kliff Kingsbury make legitimate claims for this season's Heisman trophy and Washington's Reggie Williams makes a legitimate claim for the trophy in 2003. The players put up three of the best performances by an offensive player this season and in a wide- open Heisman race, these are the games that matter most. LARRY JOHNSON, PENN STATE Why Johnson?: What does it take to be one of The Daily's players of the week. You can't just break your own record once - you have to break it twice. Against Indiana on Saturday, Johnson strengthened his Heisman campaign by k rushing for 327 yards and a career-high E four touchdowns. With the performance, Johnson set the Penn State single-season rushing record with 1,736 yards, shatter- ing the previous mark of 1,567 yards, set in 1971 by Lydell Mitchell. With one game remaining against a porous Michi- gan State defense, the magic 2,000-yard plateau isn't out of the realm of possibili- ties. The last player to accomplish such a feat was Texas Christian's LaDainian Penn State's Larry Johnson Tomilinson in 2000. REGGIE WILLIAMS, WASHINGTON Why Williams?: After falling behind 14-0 to rival Oregon, Reggie Williams and the Huskies went off, scoring 42 unan- swered points to crush the plummeting Ducks. Williams caught three of Wash ington's six touchdowns on receptions of 47, 41 and 27 yards. Williams finished with 198 yards receiving on the day. What makes the Huskies' performance all the more remarkable is that they were 5-5 coming into the game and embarrassed Oregon at home in Autzen Stadium. With his remarkable game, Williams challenges Michigan State's Charles Rogers for best wide receiver in the nation. He has NFL scouts salivating at the thought of another year of experi- ence before the lanky 6-foot-4 star likely,. enters the 2004 NFL draft. Washington's Reggie Williams KuFF KINGSBURY, TEXAS TECH Why Kingsbury? Everyone knew that Texas Tech quarterback Kliff Kings- r'.bury could pass for 500 yards and 12 touchdowns against the bottom-feed- ers of the Big 12, but nobody knew 91just how successful he would be against a vaunted defense like Texas'. Just like he did against the likes of Baylor and Missouri, Kingsbury tore apart the Longhorns' secondary, pass- ing for 473 yards and six touchdowns in the Red Raiders 42-38 victory on Saturday. Add this to his season sta- tistics and his 2002 campaign is so outrageous, EA Sports would blush. He has now passed for 4,455 yards, EE 41 touchdowns and completed more Texas Tech's Kliff Kingsbury than 68 percent of his passes for a AP PHOTOS 145.4 quarterback rating. GAME PROGRESSION First Quarter: Michigan drives down the field on the opening drive, led in large part by running back Chris Perry. A 28- yard run puts the Wolverines in Wisconsin territory, and B.J. Askew caps off the drive with a 27-yard run. Adam Finley converts the extra point. Michigan 7, Wisconsin 0 On Wisconsin's first play from scrimmage, Marlin Jackson forces a fumble by Wisconsin's Anthony Davis, which is recovered on the Badgers' 19-yard line. Perry finishes off the drive with an 11-yard run. Finley converts the PAT. Michigan 14, Wisconsin 0 Deep in their own territory, the Wolverines go three and out and punt the ball from their own 8-yard line. Jim Leonhard returns the punt 39 yards for a touchdown. Mike Allen converts the PAT. Michigan 14, Wisconsin 7 Second Quarter: Leonhard gives the Badgers good field position again, returning a punt to the Wisconsin 46. Davis has two big runs to move the Badgers inside the red zone, and caps off the drive with a two-yard run. Allen converts the PAT. Michigan 14, Wisconsin 14 Wisconsin obtains the ball courtesy of an intercepted pass from John Navarre. But the Badgers fail to con- vert on the opportunity, as Allen missesa 27-yard field goal attempt wide right. Third Quarter: Starting deep inside its own zone, Michigan uses more than eight minutes to move down the field on short plays -- the longest being a 12-yard reception by tight end Bennie Joppru. Navarre com- pletes all eight passes on this drive, including an eight-yard toss to Braylon Edwards that puts the Wolverines up for good. Finley converts the PAT. Michigan 21, Wisconsin 14 Fourth Quarter: Starting at its own 41-yard line after intercepting another Navarre pass at the beginning of the fourth quarter, Wisconsin again fails to capitalize when its drive stalls on the Michigan 34-yard line. A shanked pooch punt adds to the Badgers' frustration. In its final chance to tie up the game, Wisconsin takes over at its own 46-yard line. The Badgers drive down to the Michigan 31- yard line, two consecutive passes are broken up by Jeremy LeSueur and Markus Curry on second and third down, respectively. Bollinger's final pass sails over the head of intended receiver Darrin Charles to turn the ball over to Michigan. Michigan 21, Wisconsin 14 NEWS AND NOTES . It seems like Iowa fans forgot which stadium they were in Saturday when they clinched at least share of the Big Ten title for the first time since 1990 and finished unbeaten in conference play for the first time since 1922. The Hawkeyes also won 11 games for the first time in their history. For all of these reasons, the Hawkeyes' fans rushed the Metrodome field in Minneapolis and tore down one of the goalposts. Now, Iowa players and fans can only wait for the result of the Michigan-Ohio State showdown Saturday in Columbus. If Michigan wins, Iowa will most likely go play in the Rose Bowl. If Ohio State wins, the Buckeyes will play in the Fiesta Bowl for the national title, which would most likely open up a Rose Bowl bid for Iowa. There are Georgia players who weren't even born the last time that the Bulldogs won an SEC Championship. Saturday, with its dramatic 24-21 win against Auburn in "the oldest rivalry in the South," Georgia clinched its first SEC Eastern division championship since the conference was divided into two divisions in 1993. Kansas State's 49-13 rout of Nebraska Saturday was a record-breaking game in many ways. Quarterback Ell Roberson ran for 228 yards - the most by a Kansas State quarterback - and three touchdowns. The win was the most lopsided in school history against the normally-dominant Cornhuskers. Tennessee receiver Kelley Washington will not play football again this season. Washington is scheduled to have surgery tomorrow to fuse two vertebrae in his neck, which he injured in a game Oct. 12 against Georgia. Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer said that he had not talked to Washington, but that his top receiver was "in good spirits." The Maryland Terrapins (as odd as it sounds) are very close to winning a second straight ACC title. All the Terps need is to win out against Virginia and Wake Forest and for North Carolina State to beat Florida State Saturday. Oregon running back Onterrio Smith will have arthroscopic surgery on his left knee today and will miss Oregon's finale against Oregon State. Oregon said that Smith should be back for its bowl game. Smith originally injured the knee against Southern Cal. Oct. 26. WHAT THEY'RE SAYING Oregon State will face a "frustrated" Oregon team when the two teams square off in a game known as "The Civil War." Oregon lost to Washington 42-14 at home in its last game. "It hurts but I think we have to move on now to our next game," Oregon's Rashly Webster said. "We have to focus on Oregon State next week and take our frustration out on them." Minnesota quarterback Asad Abdul-Khaliq had nothing but good things to say about the Hawkeyes - and their rowdy faithful - after Saturday's game. "I've never seen 25,000 of the opposing team's fans at a home game," said Gophers' quarterback Asad Abdul-Khaliq. "That just shows the type of team they've had. If I was an Iowa fan, I'd go anywhere, too. They've proven that they're worthy of it." Last Tuesday night, 40 Arizona players met with the Universi- ty president to complain about coach John Mackovic's overly harsh verbal style. Mackovic then apologized to his players, and Saturday, after a 52-41 win over California, two players hoisted Mackovic on their shoulders. "They showed unbelievable courage, character, heart - every- thing," said Mackovic, who got a brief postgame ride on two freshmen's shoulders before hugging athletic director Jim Livin- good. "I don't think they'll ever forget this game. It will not nec- essarily be the biggest victory they ever have, but it's something they'll use as a lesson for a long time." Staff and wire reports contributed to this report. AP PHOTO Ohio State's Craig Krenzel WHO'S NEXT: OHIO STATE It took just seconds for the focus of the Wolverines to switch onto the undefeated Buckeyes on Saturday. This weekend's meeting in Columbus marks another unique opportunity for Michigan to play the spoiler role and ruin an Ohio State per- fect season and national title run. But to do so, Michigan will have to stop the run. Ohio State freshman sensation Maurice Clarett has already surpassed 1,000 yards on the ground despite miss- ing action in the past few games with a shoulder injury. He's expected to be ready for Saturday's clash between the rivals. The Buckeyes may not have lost yet, but they've come close the past few weeks. They squeaked past Illinois this past Sat- urday in overtime, and beat Purdue the week before in the final minutes. BIG TEN STANDINGS Best bets bite best bettor Another ho-hum week for Staff Picks, as football writers David Horn, J. Brady McCollough and Jeff Phillips continue to slowly add to their winning percentage by finishing each week a bit above .500. Another trend that has emerged is the collapse of Phillips' best bets and converse- ly the rise of Horn's best bets. Now, with both writers at 6-5, Horn's promise of the best bet throne at the end of the season no longer seems quite as outra- geous. Phillips again proves that if you are going to bet with his picks, you will have to bet on all ilte ictigun ai1g STAFF PICKS WEEK 11 SELECTIONS ALL PICKS MADE AGAINST THE SPREAD. HOME TEAMS IN SMALL CAPS. Purdue (-3) at MICHIGAN STATE Iowa (-10.5) at MINNESOTA Ohio State (-8.5) at ILLINOIS Penn State (-21) at INDIANA Texas (6) at TE TECH North Carolina State (-7) at VIRGINIA KANSAS STATE (-11) vs. Nebraska TEXAS A&M (-9.5) vs. Missouri David J. Brady Horn McCollough Purdue Purdue low aIowa Ohio State Illinois Penn State Penn State Texas Texas North Carolina State North Carolina State Kansas State Kansas State Texas A&M Texas A&M Iowa Ohio State Michigan Penn State Minnesota Purdue Illinois Michigan State Wisconsin Indiana Northwestern Bg Ten 8 0 7 0 6 1 4 3 3 4 3 4 3 4 2 5 1 6 1 6 1 6 Overall 11 1 12 0 9 2 8 3 7 4 5 6 4 7 4 7 6 6 3 8 3 8 Jeff Phillips Joe Smith MIthigsn State Meh gan States Iowa Iowa Penn State Penn State Toxe T"xas North Carolina State North Carolina State KansA&Stt Nebras a Texas A&M Texas A&M THIS WEEKEND'S RESULTS Michigan 21, Wisconsin 14 Ohio State 23, Illinois 16 (OT) Iowa 45, Minnesota 21 Penn State 58, Indiana 25 Purdue 45, Michigan State 42 'M' CCHFMTITF I i,